The man arrested following a three-hour standoff with police on Tuesday has been the subject of a standoff with Great Falls police before.

Authorities have identified Robert Spearson, 35, as the man arrested after the standoff near Longfellow Elementary on Tuesday.

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Police arrest a man outside across the street from Longfellow Elementary after a standoff that lasted about three hours Tuesday.(Photo: TRIBUNE PHOTO/SEABORN LARSON)

Spearson did not have permission from the Probation and Parole Office to be in Great Falls, according to Lt. Doug Otto of the GFPD, and the Kalispell office issued the arrest warrant.

He has three previous convictions in Cascade County, including assault with a weapon, criminal endangerment and failure to register as a violent offender.

On Tuesday, Spearson reportedly ran from police, who initially believed he was in possession of a stolen vehicle. When he fled the vehicle, GFPD discovered Spearson had left a firearm behind, according to Otto.

Otto added that GFPD's previous dealings with Spearson were the reason for the High Risk Unit's presence in the standoff.

Tuesday's incident would be the second standoff with Great Falls police of which Spearson has been part: He was arrested at the end of a 14-hour standoff with police in 2014. In that incident, police sought Spearson for failing to register as a violent offender.

Police after the 2014 incident said he was considered "armed and extremely dangerous."

U.S. Marshals joined Great Falls police and Probation and Parole officers at the standoff Tuesday, which began around 2 p.m.

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Great Falls Police High Risk Unit arrived at the standoff Tuesday after the apartment building residents had been fully evacuated.(Photo: TRIBUNE PHOTO/SEABORN LARSON)

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The Great Falls Police Department's High Risk Unit enters the apartment building, where a man withstood police efforts for about three hours.(Photo: TRIBUNE PHOTO/SEABORN LARSON)

Shortly before the arrest, the HRU team could be heard breaking out windows on the back side of the apartment building on 7th Avenue South. Police had deployed a drone for aerial coverage as officers dressed in SWAT gear covered the back steps.

Spearson appeared to be resisting arrest as officers attempted to put him in the back of a police car around 5:30 p.m.